“So, how are we supposed to get stronger using only kettlebells if the weight jumps 9lbs every time?”
I picked up this article from Chris Lopez's blog. I am not going to take credit for it - just read through this blog and make up your own mind. I am planning on doing just what he explains for the next few weeks.
Chris Wrote:
The answer to this question actually came to me while I was lying down on the beach in Jamaica a couple of weeks ago while listening to an interview with Renegade Strength Coach, Jason Ferruggia. He said something to the effect of…
Renegade Strength Coach, Jason Ferruggia
“I’ve thrown out all my little weight plates in the gym now. 2.5, 5, 10lbs plates are all gone. Now we only have the standard 25, 35, & 45lb plates. This forces my clients and athletes to MASTER a weight before they make the next big jump. So in order for them to even try to squat 135lbs (2 x 45lb plates on a standard Olympic bar that weighs 45lbs as well), they have to make darn sure they can handle 115. They have to MASTER that weight which usually means that they can do 5 sets of 10 reps at that weight before they move on. Months earlier, they may have started at 5 sets of 2 reps at 115, but staying at that weight is the safest and most effective way to gain lost lasting muscle & strength. MASTERING the weight is key.”
The point is that kettlebell training is all about PRACTICE and MASTERY – especially when it comes to strength.
The problem with lifters today – myself included – is that we’re impatient.
If it’s a 90-day challenge, we want to do it in 45.
If our buddy can press a 36kg kettlebell with ease, we want to be there NEXT WEEK even though the most we’ve ever pressed was a 24kg.
Applying patience to our training practice will ensure that we are getting lasting gains in our strength.
It’s all about MASTERING the weight and becoming an expert at the weight we’re at BEFORE we make the jump.
So if we can only press 24kg over our head right now, then let’s focus on making that 24kg seem as easy as possible before going to a 28kg or a 32kg.
So what’s a practical approach to getting stronger with kettlebells?
Let’s say that your goal by the end of the year is to press a 36kg kettlebell cleanly over your head without any assistance or momentum (so not a jerk or a push press, but a clean Standing Military Press). But the heaviest you’ve ever pressed was 24kg.
Well, I’d start with a 20kg and make sure that I could press it with ease for 5 x 5 (5 sets by 5 reps). By “ease”, I mean not fatigueing myself and not struggling through the last rep.
We are trying to perform multiple sub-maximal sets to allow our nervous system to adapt to the weight that we are lifting.
My program would look something like this…
Week 1 – 5 x 1 @ 20kg
Week 2 – 5 x 2 @ 20kg
Week 3 – 5 x 3 @ 20kg
Week 4 – 5 x 4 @ 20kg
Week 5 – 5 x 5 @ 20kg
Week 6 – Deload Week
After I’ve mastered the 20kg and know that it’s a weight that I can handle easily, then I’d start the above protocol again, but with a 24kg.
Patience, Grasshopper. PRACTICE, do not “workout”.
I know you’re spending 6 weeks only using ONE weight, but again, this is about making LASTING GAINS in strength. If that bores you, then maybe you turn on a re-run episode of Seinfeld to be entertained because this is training and it works.
And if we do the math correctly, you’d be pressing a 36kg kettlebell in about 30 weeks (which is less than a year).
Pavel calls this method “Greasing the Groove” or GTG. That is, performing your sets in the freshest state, while you have enough rest and if possible, doing it throughout the day and treating it like practice.
You’re not “working out” throughout the day, you’re practicing a skill.
This approach can be used with chin-ups – every time I walk past a chin-up bar, I’ll do a set of 8 chins with perfect form. I’m rested and I don’t have to do a 25-minute extended warm-up. Eight chin-ups is a number I know I can handle easily without getting tired.
You can use this approach with Pistols as well. Just find some kind of “trigger” and every time you see that “trigger” drop down and do a pistol – it’s kind of like a drinking game, but a lot healthier.
The bottom line is this…
STRENGTH is a skill and needs to be practiced.
You’ve got to MASTER a weight before you move on to something heavier.
PATIENCE is what will create lasting strength gains.
Chris Lopez, RKC
